Live data from Hacker News

For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

usmarshals.gov

101–110 of 424 posts

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#101
post #97

The price has tanked today as a result of this. http://cryptowat.ch/btce/btcusd/1hr/ Market started going crazy earlier today when DPR's seized coins started to move. https://blockchain.info/address/1FfmbHfnpaZjKFvyi1okTjJJusN4... The downtrend is only accelerating.

Bitcoins are absolutely worthless. If there is any sign of a tech bubble, it is these worthless hashes that people pay hundreds of dollars for. One of the genius aspects of the Bitcoin scam is the limited output and increasing difficulty as it goes on. This keeps the scam going longer. If it were like tulip bulbs, or subprime real estate, or pets.com type stocks, the bubble would eventually burst. With the types of b…

Bitcoins have value because they let you buy things.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#102

Isn't this a bit presumptuous? Ross William Ulbricht hasn't yet been convicted of anything. I know that they aren't selling his personal bitcoins, but in the (highly unlikely) event that he is found innocent, wouldn't that mean that the Silk Road assets need to be returned to him? How then can they sell them now?

I am under the impression that they are auctioning off bitcoins that belonged to "The Silk Road" and not "Ross Ulbricht". There is no doubt in anyone's mind that the bitcoin sitting inside the silkroad wallets was free for the taking by U.S. authorities. Whether or not Ross Ulbricht's wealth is owed to the U.S. government they're not sure, so they're keeping them until the trial has completed.

I'm not sure they really belonged to The Silk Road. Didn't they really belong to the users, who had them on deposit on The Silk Road?

I guess the law would see that as belonging to the business holding them, but I'm not sure that's morally correct.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#103
post #82
post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That counts as supply. Silver in the earth also exists prior to sale, but it only counts when you actually sell it.

By this logic, withdrawing money from the ATM increases money supply... Also, the expected amount of silver in the ground is factored into the current price of silver. It's really only when new deposits are discovered that there is an impact to the price. Actually pulling known silver deposits out of the ground has a negligible effect on the price.

This is completely false. If what you were saying were true, the price of oil would not change when the stability of the middle east was under question. Supply is the amount on the market, not the amount locked up somewhere that can't be brought to market immediately.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#104
post #97

The price has tanked today as a result of this. http://cryptowat.ch/btce/btcusd/1hr/ Market started going crazy earlier today when DPR's seized coins started to move. https://blockchain.info/address/1FfmbHfnpaZjKFvyi1okTjJJusN4... The downtrend is only accelerating.

Bitcoins are absolutely worthless. If there is any sign of a tech bubble, it is these worthless hashes that people pay hundreds of dollars for. One of the genius aspects of the Bitcoin scam is the limited output and increasing difficulty as it goes on. This keeps the scam going longer. If it were like tulip bulbs, or subprime real estate, or pets.com type stocks, the bubble would eventually burst. With the types of b…

I didn't downvote, but I have to wonder what you're threshhold for not being a scam is? What companies will have to accept it, and how long will it have to be around?

I'm pretty amazed that people still think it's a scam when huge companies with massive legal departments are accepting it. That's some pretty extreme skepticism.

BTW, there are plenty of easy, legitimate ways to short Bitcoin, but given your extraordinarily high threshold for "non-scam", I won't bother mentioning them.

PS: Bitcoins are valuable because people are willing to buy them. Despite what most people think, money is not magic, it's just an agreement.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#105
post #42
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really. Seized properties often sell for less than half of the market value... doesn't mean the property is worth half now... it means the government can't be bothered to take on the responsibility of selling the property at full retail -- ie. they just want to get rid of the assets and move on.

but it does show that bitcoins are NOT considered the same thing as cash. You would not see the case where JPY or GBP or EUR would be sold off at this level of discount...

Where can I walk in with 29,0000 bitcoin x market value and walk out with suitcases full of $100 bills? I wonder if there is any legal implications of the federal government selling Bitcoin. I always felt the majority of bitcoins were mined illegially(on company, and university mainframes--without consent). I'm surprised they are asking for a deposit in cash?

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#106
post #19
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I take that to mean cash in the sense of liquid assets, as opposed to something leveraged or what have you. Not cash in the sense of a briefcase full of cash.

TERMS OF SALE: Cash. The bid must be an all cash offer. You have to wire the money, so it's not physical stacks of currency. But it does have to be US dollars.

Yes, that's what he meant by liquid assets.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#107

Surely this creates precedent of US government recognised legitimacy? While it might hurt the markets in the short run, i reckon it'll overall help bitcoin as a currency in the long term.

It reinforces existing government policy that Bitcoin isn't intrinsically illegal, but nothing more than that.

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#108
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you were the US Marshals, would you entrust the government's money[1] to an unregulated Bitcoin exchange? [1] As to whether the government is morally, ethically, or legally entitled to the seized properties, I have no opinion. I don't know anything about the situation.

The government doesn't see Bitcoin as money. Instead it's just selling seized property like it always does.

> The government doesn't see Bitcoin as money.

I think the money in GP refers to the other side of the trade -- if you sell an asset on an exchange, you are going to then have money (received from the purchaser) that is yours on that exchange until you are able to extract it.

Ideally, that would be trivial, but that hasn't always been the case for BTC exchanges (Mt.Gox being a notable example for an extended period of time.)

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#109
post #24

Will they announce the winning bidders? Those coins will then be linked to the winners' identities permanently in the block chain. Talk about painting a target on oneself.

Does Donald Trump or Bill Gates have to shy away the fact that they have seemingly endless amounts of money?

Re: For Sale: 29,656.51306529 Bitcoins

#110
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not a great look for the BitCoin market if you can buy in bulk at 75%.

Look at the restrictions, though. Potential bidders must have $200,000 USD Deposit sent to the U.S. Marshalls from a U.S. bank account by 9am June 16th (~2 business days from now). That disqualifies a good 99.9999% of the world from being eligible to bid.

They are in blocks of 3000. You obviously can't even bid if you don't have 200k.
Post reply on HN